With Singapore’s wealth of meatless restaurants, vegetarians and vegans can fill their bellies in just about any neighbourhood in the city. Here are five eateries to check out if you’re in the western areas of the island.
Original Sin
For Asian and Mediterranean plates
Feta cheese, hummus (chickpea purée), yoghurt and fresh herbs make Original Sin’s Mediterranean-leaning vegetarian dishes as authentic as they can be. If you’re dining in a group, order the mezze platter which comes with hummus, baba ganoush (eggplant purée), tzatziki (cucumber and yoghurt dip), falafel (fried chickpea balls) and a variety of Middle Eastern breads. For à la carte dishes, go for the moussaka, which is a baked casserole made with grilled eggplant, potato, tomato and lentils, topped with béchamel sauce.
Original Sin. Block 43 Jalan Merah Saga #01-62, Singapore 278115. +65 6475 5605.
Daily 11.30am-2.30pm, 6-10.30pm
D’Life Bistro & Café
For Buddhist-style vegetarian food
D’Life serves lacto-ovo vegetarian food with no onions, garlic, leeks, chives and shallots—five pungent roots that Buddhists believe will hinder meditation. Take your pick from an assortment of delicious rice, noodle, tofu and spaghetti dishes.
D'Life. Blk 428 Jurong West Avenue 1 #01-256, Singapore 640428. +65 6425 0128.
Daily 10.30am-10pm.
Project Açaí
For superfood bowls
As Singapore’s first superfood specialty café, Project Açaí uses Sambazon açaí berries, which are hand-harvested in Brazil, in its bowls and smoothies. Tuck into the Original Flower Bowl, which has a blended açaí base that is topped with banana, granola and other superfoods such as bee pollen, cacao nibs, goji berries, coconut shavings and chia seeds. They also serve delicious smoothies such as “Where My Chocolate Abs?”—a fun blend of chocolate oat milk, banana, nut butter and cacao nibs.
Project Açai at Holland Village. 27 Lorong Liput, Singapore 277738.
Daily 11.30am-10pm.
For full list of outlets, visit here.
Ruyi Yuan Vegetarian
For mountains of bee hoon
The queue to Ruyi Yuan Vegetarian stretches beyond the hawker centre it’s located in, but it’s worth the wait. The stall has been serving up stellar plates of vegetarian bee hoon (rice vermicelli) since 1983. When it’s your turn to order, be sure to pile on the side dishes. We recommend the crispy bean curd skin, mock barbecued pork, cabbage and mock roasted duck. Here’s a tip: Visit on Sundays for a wider selection of dishes.
Ruyi Yuan Vegetarian at Redhill. 80 Redhill Lane, Stall 4, Singapore 150080. +65 9712 4621.
Tue-Sun 5.30am-noon.
The Living Cafe
For gluten-free Western fare
Founded by nutritionist Dana Heather, The Living Cafe serves raw vegan dishes that are also gluten- and nut-free. An entrée on its all-day menu that you should try is the zucchini lasagna, which stacks up mock meat, zucchini, tomatoes, pesto and macadamia ‘cheese’. Not all items are vegan, however. The café also has vegetarian brunch plates such as the Big Breakfast, which is made up of scrambled eggs, eggplant ‘bacon’, roasted tomatoes, mushrooms and pesto.
The Living Cafe. 779 Bukit Timah Road, Singapore 269758. +65 6468 4482.
Mon-Thu 11am-7pm; Fri 11am-10pm; Sat 9am-10pm; Sun 9am-8pm.